Coast Guard searching for whale in trouble

The Coast Guard is searching for a juvenile humpback whale entangled in nettingi. This picture shows the whale and a companion yesterday.as a small Coast Guard boat monitored the whale. At the time, the Coast Guard boat did not have equipment to free the whale and the boat returned to port. Mariners and helicopter tour companies are asked to keep a lookout for the juvenile humpback today so that the Coast Guard can locate it and attempt to free the marine mammal today.

The Coast Guard is searching for a juvenile humpback whale last seen yesterday entangled in netting off Kauai.

A radio message was sent to mariners to keep an eye out for the whale estimated to be 35 to 40 feet long. Helicopter tour companies were also notified.

At about 10:30 a.m. yesterday, the Coast Guard said a helicopter tour company spotted an entangled whale about 1,000 yards from Honopu Point Kauai's Na Pali Coast

A small Coast Guard boat on a routine patrol on the west side of the island diverted to the scene and spotted the whale. It appeared to be tangled in about 60 to 80 feet of line with a white buoy attached, said Eric Roberts, marine mammal response coordinator for the Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard crew did not have disentanglement equipment on board and crew members monitored the whale for three hours.

Roberts said they received the equipment from the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary after the vessel returned to the station yesterday. The whale was last seen two nautical miles off of Kukole Point, Kauai at about 2 p.m. yesterday. The whale was heading in the southeast direction traveling toward Waimea.

Sanctuary officials reported the mammal appeared slightly emaciated, but in fair condition. It's still healthy and strong, said Roberts.

The Coast Guard is attempting to relocate the whale based on its last known course and speed. If spotted, a crew will be deployed to disentangle the whale.

The whale was initially seen traveling with a companion that was not entangled. Sanctuary spokeswoman Christine Brammer said the companion was not seen with the juvenile whale when a tour operator reported seeing the whale off of Port Allen Harbor around sunset yesterday.

"It's hard to say how far it could've traveled overnight. They move between islands," she said.

Anyone who have information on the location of the entangled whale is asked to call the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Marine Mammal Hotline at 888-256-9840.